* ETDFRUR! standing for Epic Two Day Fagaras Ridge Ultra Run

Well, it actually started with a train from Bucharest. After buying a couple pastry products and a breakfast from McDonalds, I considered myself prepared for the 5 and a half hours ride to Talmaciu.

The town of Talmaciu was my last chance for a hot meal. Bought something that was advertised as a schnitzel sandwich. I didn’t care about the shady booth my meal was prepared in, or the fact it only took two minutes to get it from frozen to served. But chewing on a raw chunk of chicken meat made my appetite go away.

Went on the 7 km walk to the village of Turnu Rosu, followed by 3 more kilometers to the Turnu Rosu Monastery, the official starting point of the hike. Along the way I met a group of 3 French guys. We camped just after the monastery, near an abandoned building with a conveniently placed spring. They were planning to hike the Fagaras Ridge in 5 days, so they had all the standard equipment and food: cooking stove and utensils, sausages, vegetables, mushrooms. Meanwhile, I ate my powders and went to sleep.

Sleeping was tough on the 180 gram sleeping pad I chose for the trip. Yes, it was way lighter than the self-inflating mattress (by over 400 grams), but I was constantly having a numb arm or leg and had to keep shifting positions. I was already awake at 3 am when a car stopped next to me and unloaded half a dozen blueberry pickers. They were off up the trail and I wondered if I should go with them as well, knowing I was in for a long day.

Still, tried to sleep for another two hours. Started the hike at 6 am. Reaching the alpine meadows, I enjoyed the views towards the north, with Talmaciu and Sibiu, and towards the west, with Valea Oltului.

The first part of the trail was pretty gentle. Some technical sections (rockier, steeper, more exposed) started appearing after Lake Avrig. I tried to keep a good pace, as I knew the terrain was only going to get tougher.

And then I got to Peak Serbota. The ridge from here to the base of Peak Negoiu (the infamous Custura Saratii) is only a kilometer long. I needed one hour to clear it (and it felt like forever). I would crawl over some rocks, climb/descend some chain section, stop to gasp for air, look back and see I’ve barely advanced. All that struggling really took a toll on me and I started feeling the fatigue. Took a shot of caffeine and carried on.

I got to Peak Negoiu (km 25 of the trip) after 8 hours. From here to Lake Capra my route will be overlapping with the one from 2X2. Enjoyed the atmosphere and commotion (compared to the solitude on the first part of the ridge). Also met a few familiar faces.

Somewhere near Balea Lake it started raining. Quite depressing, as on either side of the mountain, mere hundreds of meters away, it was sunny. After Lake Capra it got lonely again. My original plan was to stop at Lake Podul Giurgiului, but sleeping in wen/rainy conditions is not very comfortable when you only have a bivy sack. So I decided to cut the day short (at only 12 and a half hours) and sleep at the Fereastra Zmeilor shelter.

I wasn’t the only one there. 13 Polish scouts were busy cooking pasta, soup or tea. With all the cooking and humidity, it felt like a sauna. Still, better a sauna than the 7 degrees outside. Again, I ate my powders and went to sleep. I let the others know I’d be waking up at 5 AM, hoping it would motivate them to go to sleep earlier.